When a liquid is poured from a container, it is often found that it is difficult to terminate pouring without having one or more drops of the liquid run down the outside of the container. This tendency to drip is largely a characteristic of the container itself, rather than a function of the pouring motion. Thus, it is known by those skilled in the art that dripping can be substantially eliminated by a combination of a properly contoured mouth or lip on the container and a non-wetting pouring surface on the lip. A well designed no-drip container will actually cause the last drops of a liquid to be pulled back into the container even if they have passed the highest point on the pouring surface.
Unfortunately, it has often been impractical to incorporate satisfactory no-drip characteristics in large numbers of mass produced containers. Consumer dissatisfaction with the pour characteristics of inexpensive mass-produced containers, such as salad oil bottles, is aggravated by the fact that the containers are sometimes used over and over again to pour relatively small quantities. The dripped contents tend to accumulate on the outside of the container, leading to a messy and potentially unsanitary condition.
One known solution to the above problem is to form the container by a process which permits a high degree of accuracy in forming the neck of the container. Unfortunately, this process is relatively expensive and significantly increases the cost of producing the containers. Another known solution to the above problem is the use of a fitment, a small permanent attachment to the mouth of the container that forms the pouring surface. There are, however, a number of important problems and disadvantages associated with the use of fitments. The manufacture of a fitment having the desired three dimensional pouring surface is often an expensive proposition requiring a complex molding process. It is also difficult to obtain a good seal between the fitment and the container because of the relatively large tolerances generally associated with such containers, and leakage can occur between the fitment and the cap or closure of the containers.
The objective of the present invention is to provide a no-drip pouring lip on a container manufactured by a relatively inexpensive process, which overcomes the disadvantages of previously known fitments and expensive molding processes, and satisfies the design criteria set forth above.